We’re rolling out the newest release of Hotmail as we speak. Slow rollouts are typical for large web services, both at Microsoft and other companies. We’re going to blog more about our slow rollouts and how they maximize the stability of the site in another post. Our Hotmail team blog readers know that we always roll out major updates slowly so that if any issues pop up, we can catch them early before they affect everybody.

Thanks so much to all of our observant Hotmail customers who have seen our latest version and added their constructive comments. The more you can tell us about the issues you are having, the easier it is for us to understand and fix them quickly. Here are some of the issues we’ve heard about, along with what you should try if you’re having the problem, or what we’re doing to fix it.

Can’t see your list of folders?

We’re hearing from a good number of you that you’re having problems seeing your e-mail folders with the new version of Windows Live Hotmail. This happens when you have the font size for your browser set to “large” or “largest.” If you’re experiencing this issue, please switch your browser font setting to “medium.” This is a temporary solution to a problem that we’re working on fixing soon. We apologize for the inconvenience and will notify you when this is fixed.

Having trouble opening messages?

A few people have mentioned that they can’t open messages. We don’t have any reports from customers yet that provide a clear list of the steps taken that produce the problem, so we would love to hear more details from you if you’re experiencing this issue. Please make sure you’ve set your browser font size to “medium” before reporting this issue, and try turning off your reading pane.

Want more space to read your messages and to open each message with a click?

You may have your reading pane turned on. Consider turning it off, especially if you have a small monitor. To do this, click "Options" in the upper right corner, and then under “Reading pane settings,” select “Off.” You may also want to maximize the size of your browser window and set your browser font size is set to “medium” for now.

Trouble scrolling your Hotmail window?

If you have a smaller monitor, try maximizing the size of your browser window. Also check your browser font size and set it to “medium.”

Can’t find your contacts when forwarding or composing a message?

We wanted to give you more space for typing your message, so we moved your list of contacts on the compose page. It’s still there, but it’s just hiding under the "To" button. Jennie from the Contacts team shares her tips:

When composing or forwarding a message, you have two easy ways to select contacts to send or forward to:

 

Select contacts from your contact list

1.       Click the To button.

2.       Click the People, Categories, or Favorites tab.

3.       Select the contacts that you want to send the message to.

4.       After you've finished selecting your contacts, click Close.

 

or…

 

Begin entering e-mail addresses or names

1.       In the box next to the To button, start typing the person's name or e-mail address. 

2.       As you type, contacts that match the letters that you're typing automatically appear below the To box.

3.       Click the person's name or e-mail address from the list to select that person.

Want to customize Hotmail’s new look?

Hotmail has changed its look to match the new direction of the rest of its Windows Live siblings. Customize your Hotmail’s look by clicking Options in the upper-right corner, and then choosing your favorite theme from the samples shown.

Was your Hotmail account unavailable?

Running a reliable e-mail system is the highest priority for the Hotmail team. We periodically need to upgrade our servers, to add new features or install security patches, so this means that your Hotmail is occasionally unavailable for a few minutes. We apologize for this inconvenience. Please understand that we do everything we can to minimize this down time.

Did your Hotmail account expire?

To keep your Hotmail account, you’ll need to sign in to check your inbox at least once every 180 days (approximately 6 months).

Keep your feedback coming. It helps us make Hotmail work better for people like you. If you’re having a problem, please include details and the steps that you took when the issue arose.

Thanks for using Windows Live Hotmail!

 - Ellie Powers, program manager, and the Windows Live Hotmail team

[Update, Nov 7, 2008]: Thanks for your thoughtful comments and questions! We're still listening, and we've posted answers to more questions here.